& nbsp;
& nbsp;
It took almost three years “to get back on the podium and that justifies the effort of the whole team to which I am very grateful”, said the Cypriot sailor Pavlos Kontidis from Hyeres, shortly before the awarding of the gold medal in the Laser category.
“The 'Wimbledon Sailing' is over and I'm very happy for the gold. It was a very intense medal race. For the first time we entered the first four with a difference of three points. “Among the top three, whoever finished first took the gold, while from the fourth Hanson who was just behind me to finish in front of him, just as it happened: he won the race and I got the gold coming behind him,” he added.
According to an announcement, Pavlos Kontidis won this match for the second time and the gold for the fourth time in a World Cup.
For the medal race, the Cypriot sailor said that it was a race with a lot of nerves and very little wind.
“Positions were constantly changing. From the beginning, the German was a little behind. I was playing with the English. The key to the race was the first treble. I made the right choice and managed to move up from positions 5-6 to positions 1-2. In the second half we played a lot of game with the English. I was trying to stay in front of Beckett and Hanson was trying to throw me behind them. In the end I managed to stay second. I could have passed him in the end but I did not risk a penalty for pumping. “The judges were generally not strict, they could have given some penalties but they did not,” he noted.
After the first six, qualifying races, Pavlos Kontidis was third overall with two first, two second, one third and one tenth place. After the four final races in the Golden Fleet he came first – equal to Buhl – having a fifth, two seventh and a 17th place while in the medal race he was seventh.
“All week I did very good sailing here, I had the most stable races. In the air I was very good. After sixth place in Mallorca I saw that I wanted to improve my fitness. In this race I seemed more prepared, something that makes me very happy “comments the Cypriot Olympian, who is No. 1 in the World Ranking of Lasers.
As he mentioned,” almost three years have passed to get back on the podium and that justifies the effort of the whole team to which I am very grateful. “
” It is very important that the podium comes to Hyeres, in a historical fight “, he added.
Regarding the continuation of the season, Pavlos Kontidis said that next is the World Championship, the big goal of the year.
« On May 10, I leave Split for Mexico. Let's go early, the races start on May 24th. “Let's acclimatize to being ready for this big fight,” he added.
In closing, Pavlos Kontidis did not fail to thank the people for the encouraging messages throughout the week and all those who sent congratulations after this victory, State officials and the world and of course its sponsors, its timeless companion, OPAP Cyprus, RCB Bank, the Leventio Foundation, Petrolina, easyBoat and the Stelios Foundation as well as VITA Construction.
KYPE
& nbsp;
>
Chrysos Pavlos Kontidis in the Hyeres World Cup
